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T. G. BOWIOK. PROOESSOF PURIFYING ALCOHOL.

No. 391,015. Patented Oct. 16, 1888.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

T. G. BOWIGK.

PROCESS OF PURI'FYING ALCOHOL.

No. 391,015. Patented Oct. 16. 1888.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS GILBERT BOWICK, OF H ARPENDEN, COUNTY OF HERTS, ENGLAND.

PROCESS OF PURIFYING ALCOHOL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 391,015, dated October 16, 1888.

Application filed November 2,1887. Serial No. 254,104 (No specimens.) Patented in England October 29, 1887,1'0. 14,737; in France November 4, 1887, No. 186,780; in Germany Novemberll, 1887, No. 43,695; in Luxemburg March 20, 1888, No. 968; in Norway March 24, 1888, No. 863, and in Italy May 3, 1888, X131, 467.

T aZZ whom it may concern.- from the purifying medium and can be added Be it known that I, THOMAS GILBERT BoW- to the purified alcohol of such quality and to K, chemist, a subject of the Queen of Engsuch extent as toiinpart the flavor to the pure land, residing at Harpenden, in the county of alcohol,which forms the difference between al- 5 Herts and Kindom of England, have invented cohol as such and the whisky or other dis- 55 certain new and useful Improvements in the tilled spirits used for consumption. Process of Purifying Alcohol, (for which I The series of operations forming my process have obtained the following patents: In Engconsist in forcing the alcohol under great land October 29, 1887, No. 14,737; in France pressure through a pipe provided with a rose IO November 4, 1887, N0. 173,86t; in Germany having fine perforations in an upward direc- 6 November 10, 1887, No. 17,567; in France Notion into and through a series of closed ves vember 4, 1887, No. 186,780; in Luxemburg sels containing a hydrocarbon of lighter spe- March 20, 1888, No. 968; in Italy May 8, 1888, cific gravity than the alcohol itself; in forcing No.467,Vol.XLV; in NorwayMarch 24,1888, hydrocarbons under great pressure through No. 863, and in Germany November 11,1887, a pipe provided with a rose having fine 6 No. 43,695,) of which the following is a speciperforations in the opposite direction to fication. those of the first-mentioned rose against and My invention relates to a new and useful into the alcohol which is being forced out of process and apparatus for the purification of the first rose, thereby atomizing the alcohol as alcohol by means of hydrocarbons. it issues from the rose; or the pipe through 0 Manyattemptshave been made to refine alcowhich the alcohol is forced and the pipe hol by means of hydrocarbons. Among other through which the hydrocarbon is forced may processes, the Vapor of impure alcohol was both terminate in the same rose, and. both either distilled through the hydrocarbon or fluids be forced together through the same 2 5 the alcohol was filtered through a porous maperforations; or, preferably still, both pipes 7 5 terial impregnated with hydrocarbons conmay terminate in a four-bladed small turbine tained in one or more vessels at the pressure or sparger made to revolve by the efllux of of the atmosphere, or hydrocarbons were the two combined fluids out of the end openpassed throughacolumn of alcohol. In neither ings of its blades, the result in every case beof these cases could the alcohol be broughtinto ing a most intimate emulsion of the two fluids;

a sufficiently intimate contact with the hydroin causing the emulsion to pass through a colcarbons, in consequence of which only a parumn of alcohol of constant height at the bottial purification ot' the alcohol from its accomtom of each cylinder, a porous diaphragm bepanying ethersfusel-oil and others-was efing placed in the body of the column of alcohol. 5 fected, and the operation required a very conin order to promote by osmotic action incipi- 8 siderable time. ent separation of the emulsion of the alcohol My invention consists of a series of operaand hydrocarbon and to force nearly clear altions which in combination constitutea novel cohol downward and into the succeeding cylprocess, the essential features of which are inder; in placing aporons diaphragm near the 0 that the alcohol is brought in an atomized topof each cylinder,in order to cause thcsepag0 condition into the most intimate contact with ration of the hydrocarbon and alcohol and to thehydrocarbon,thereby forming an emulsion, force nearly clear hydrocarbon upward in the in consequence of which the alcohol isliberated opposite direction into the succeeding cylinder; absolutely from all its impurities and in the in forcingthe alcohol coming from the series of very shortest space of time. hydrocarbon-cylinders through a cylinder- It consists, further, in providing means of the last in the seriescontaining pure alcohol separating the emulsion formed between the only, in order to stillfurther separate the emultwo liquids by osmotic action; also,in that the sion of the alcohol and hydrocarbon; but if various higher alcohols or others constituting from too rapid working the alcohol should still 50 these impurities each separately are recovered be slightly charged with hydrocarbon, I pass it into a centrifuge of similar construction to those used for the separation of cream from milk, in order to absolutely separate the last.

traces of hydrocarbon from the alcohol; and in recovering the ethers taken up by the hydrocarbon, each separately, by means of fractional distillation, and adding them at will, after rectification of the purified alcohol,to the pure alcohol as flavoring material.

For the better comprehension of my inven tion, I will now proceed to describe my process by reference to the accompanying drawings, upon which- Figure 1 is a sectional elevation, and Fig. 2 a sectional plan, of my purifying apparatus with five cylinders, the upper portion of one of the cylinders being removed, Figs. 3 and 4 showing modifications of part thereof.

In carrying out my process I employ a series of cylinders, Asay seven in number. Assuming these cylinders to he, say, seven feet high by two feet in diameter, each cylinder is filled to a height of, say, two feet with pure alcohol, while the last of the series, T, is filled entirelywith pure alcohol. At about,say, six inches from the bottom of each cylinder is placed a diaphragm, B, which consists of two perforated metal plates covered on the inner side with a layervof canvas, between which is placed filteringpaper or any suitable porous material. There are therefore eighteen inches of pure alcohol over the diaphragm. Theremaining five feet over the column of'aleohol are filled entirely through the funnels K with a well refined fluid hydrocarbon. of a specific gravity of about 850 to 880. Say six inches from the top of each of the first six cylinders (the first four on the drawings) is placed a similar diaphragm, H. I then, by means of the pump E, force the impure alcohol (which is to contain about two parts of water to one of alcohol) through the pipe 0 and turbineD into the supernatant hydrocarbon. At the same time I force hydrocarbon, by means of the pump N and pipes G, into the same turbine, D. In this manner constant streams of alcohol and of hydrocarbon are simultaneouslyforced out of the end openings of the blades of the turbine, which, on account of the effinx of the liquids, revolves with great velocity in the body of the hydrocarbon and causes a most intimate emulsion of the latter with the alcohol; or, as shown at Fig. 3, I may use two roses placed exactly opposite each other, the rose It being for the introduction of the hydrocarbon in spray, and the rose V for the alcohol; or, asshown at Fig. 4,1 may use a single rose, X, for the simultaneous introduction of the hydrocarbon and alcohol into the hydrocarbon, contained in the closed cylinder. The alcohol, being of the greater specific gravity, descends through the column of hydrocarbon, begins to separate on arriving at the column of alcohol, and, separating still further through osmotic action, on reaching the porous diaphragm at the bottom the alcohol,butslightly emulsed with hydrocarbon and partially purified, is forced into the succeeding cylinder through pipe 0, where it undergoes the same operation and further purification,until on its arrival at the last of the series of cylinders,T, the alcohol should be free from any of the ethers. The last of the series of cylinders, T, being entirely filled with pure alcohol, the final separation of the emulsion takes place,and the alcohol may be drawn off through the bent pipe. W to a store-tank, and the aldehyde contained in the alcohol may then be neutralized with alkali and the purified alcohol rectified, ready for the market.

Should the working have been too rapid, and the alcohol consequently be still slightly charged with hydrocarbon,the alcohol is then pumped through the bent pipe W onto a centrifuge, P, similar to the separators of cream from milk, and the last particles of hydrocarbons are here separated from the alcohol. The former flows into the tank 0 and the latter into the tank S. The hydrocarbon forced by the pump N flows in an opposite direction through the series of cylinders A, and separates from the alcohol through osmotic action by means of the porous diaphragms H, placed near the top of the cylinder,and passes through the connecting-pipe L into a tank, M, from which it is pumped into a still, in which the last traces of alcohol, as well as the fusel-oil and other ethers taken up from the impure alcohol,

are separated from the hydrocarbon by means of fractional distillation,and such of the ethers added after rectification to the purified alcohol, which will impart to it the flavor desired in whisky and in other distilled spirits of consumption.

The apparatus herein shown and described in connection with my improved process for the purification of alcohol is not specifically herein claimed, the same forming the subjectmatter of a separate application filed September 21, 1888, Serial No. 285,955.

Having fully described my invention, what I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent 1s- 1. The herein-described process of purifying alcohol, which consists in forming an emulsion of impure alcohol and a hydrocarbon of lighter specific gravity than the alcohol, partially separating the purified alcohol and hydrocarbon by gravity, and further separating the hydrocarbon and alcohol by osmotic action, as set forth.

2. The herein-described process of purifying alcohol by means of hydrocarbon, which consists in a series of like operations, each operation comprising forming an emulsion of impure alcohol and a hydrocarbon of lighter specific gravity than the alcohol, partially separating the purified alcohol and hydrocarbon by gravity, and further separating the hydro carbon and alcohol by osmotic action, as set forth.

3. The herein-described process of purifying alcohol, which consists in forming an emulsion of impure alcohol and a hydrocarbon of lighter specific gravity than the alcohol, partially separating the purified alcohol and hydrocarbon by gravity, and further separating the hydrocarbon and alcohol by osmotic action, then recombining the hydrocarbon with other and less purified alcohol as an emulsion, then again partially separating the hydrocarbon and alcohol by gravity, and further by osmotic action, substantially as set forth.

4. The herein-described process of purifying alcohol by means of hydrocarbon, which consists in a series of like operations, each operation comprising forming an emulsion of impure alcohol and ahydrocarbon of lighter specific gravity than the alcohol, partially separating the purified alcohol and hydrocarbon by gravity, further separating the hydrocarbon and alcohol by osmosis, and then finally completing the separation by centrifugal action, as set forth.

5. The hereindescribcd process of purifying alcohol, which consists in forming an emulsion of impure alcohol and hydrocarbon of lighter specific gravity than the alcohol, par tially separating the purified alcohol and hy- 25 drocarbon by gravity, and further separating the hydrocarbon and alcohol by osmotic action, then recombining the hydrocarbon with other partially-purified alcohol to form an emulsion, then partially separating the hy- 3o drocarbon and alcohol by gravity, and further separating the same by osmotic action, repeating the process until the hydrocarbon absorbs all or nearly all the impurities of the alcohol, and then completing the separation 35 by centrifugal action, as set forth.

THOMAS GILBERT BOVVICK. 

